Robert James (28 March 1924 – 31 July 2004) was a British actor, who was best known for his

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

work. Born in Paisley,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, Robert James trained to be a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solicit ...

, before being spotted by a professional director while performing in

amateur dramatics An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist. History Hist ...

. Although a handful have survived, many of James' television performances were amongst those discarded by UK broadcasters throughout the 1960s and 70s, including his iconic role as Lesterson in ''

The Power of the Daleks ''The Power of the Daleks'' is the completely missing third serial of the fourth season of British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', and which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 5 November to 10 December 1966. It is ...

'', which now only exists as still photographs and audio recordings.

Marriage

He was married to actres
Mona Bruce (1924-2008)
until his death; they had one child. Clair Mcallister

Death

Robert James died in 2004, aged 80, from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

Credits

References

External links

* 1924 births 2004 deaths Deaths from Alzheimer's disease Deaths from dementia in England Male actors from Paisley, Renfrewshire Scottish male film actors Scottish male television actors {{UK-tv-actor-1920s-stub